Artist’s rendering of proposed San Juan Downtown Conference Center revealed

3 months ago 96

SAN JUAN, Texas – An artist’s rendering of what the proposed San Juan Downtown Conference Center will look like has been made public. And it includes a tip o’ the hat to the old San Juan Hotel.

San Juan residents will get to see the renderings at a town hall meeting being hosted by city leaders this coming week. The event is being dubbed the Downtown Development Plan Open House. It takes place at the San Juan Memorial Library from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on June 26.

The old San Juan Hotel will likely be demolished to make way for the new 500-person capacity conference center. But, said San Juan City Manager Ben Arjona, elements of the old hotel will be included in the new facility.

The conference center has been designed by McAllen-based ERO Architects, which also fashioned the new city hall.

“So, knowing the way ERO works, knowing their capabilities of transforming something that is dilapidated into something new, something nice, it’s going to be a beautiful building,” Arjona said.

“I think at the end of the day, if people really look into it, and see how it (the old hotel) was transformed, they will love it.”

The Rio Grande Guardian recently sat down for an in-depth video interview with Arjona. We wanted to know about the growth of the city, both residential and industrial, and the downtown revitalization plans. A story on the city’s growth will come later. For now, what is newsworthy is the conference center project, which is part of the City’s downtown revitalization plans.

Arjona was asked where things are at with the conference center project. He said nothing has been decided yet.

“We’re at the point where we’re doing the strategizing. What do we want to see there?” Arjona responded. “So, there’s a render already in place that ERO, the architects, are working on, and this has to do with the hotel.”

Arjona acknowledged that there has been criticism of plans to tear down the historic hotel.

“So, there was a lot of negativity about demolishing the San Juan Hotel. Apparently, there’s a lot of funding (to restore it to its former glory). We don’t know where the funding is at. We looked. I researched. My grants writers are looking into it. Do we want to keep the hotel? Do we want to demolish it? At the end, that will be up to the commission, to the EDC working together, to see what is it that they want to see there,” Arjona said.

Arjona continued: “If and when the building gets demolished and if and when the building gets a new conference center, there’s going to be something that will mimic our San Juan Hotel. The facade will probably be something similar to it. So, there’s remembrance. I want to remember what the hotel used to look like.

“When you look at the hotel at the top there’s some nice facade. I talked to ERO and said, you know what, I want to keep that same type of facade. Put it on the new building. A nice monument on the inside, something that talks about the history of San Juan Hotel, talk about the history of San Juan. Maybe put it there somewhere.”

Asked what the cost of the new facility would be, Arjona said: “If it’s approved, the way that is being shown to us, we’re looking at about maybe six to eight mil, something like that. Maybe more because costs in construction is going up and up every single day.”

Asked if a new conference center could be built on the site in question without demolishing the old hotel, Arjona said it depends of the cost factor.

“You can see part of the hotel is falling apart. You can see a big old crack. It’s coming open,” Arjona said. “I don’t really foresee how you can save it but I’m not a structural engineer. But we don’t see that. We see a new building, a new attraction to the city, something that is going to motivate our people to live here and stay here in San Juan. And, obviously with the (current) downtown revitalization (currently underway), that will be part of it, if comes into play.”

Arjona said the new conference center will be a multi-purpose and multi-use facility, available for use by city departments and the general public. He said he could foresee it being rented out for quinceñeras and weddings.

Hidalgo County Historical Commission wants to work with the City of San Juan to ensure the historic San Juan Hotel is preserved. The group does not believe the structure is so far gone that it cannot be saved. And, the group says, grants are available to restore the building.

Asked if the society has reached out to him and asked for a meeting, Arjona said: “No.”

“I know they come over to the meetings, and they said there’s millions and millions of dollars. Where? Where were you 20 years ago, where were you 10 years ago when the hotel wasn’t ours?” Arjona said.

“But anyways, I’m not here to criticize or anything like that. I just want to make the city another focal point… a conference center that will mimic the old hotel. It’s not going to be (exactly) like it (the hotel), but it’s going to be close.”

Arjona said best he can tell the San Juan Hotel is not listed as an historical building.

“The land is a landmark. So, we would have to move the (Thomas Rayfield) marker that is there somewhere else within the same area. There is some guidance that I need to follow, but it’s not very strict.”

Arjona serves as interim executive director of San Juan Economic Development Corporation. It has been the EDC, not the city that has been working on the conference center project with ERO. Asked if wearing two hats for the city is difficult, Arjona said: “No, I think it’s a lot easier.”

Arjona explained: “Before it was to be like, come on over, let’s talk about this. Now I can go directly to the EDC board members and go directly to the city commission members and say, this is what we’ve got.”

Arjona said it is up to the EDC board of directors to decide if they want someone other than him to run the corporation. “

And I’m okay with that. But is it working well? Yes, absolutely. Is it more work for me? Of course it is. But we love the challenges.”

Back to the conference center project, Arjona said the funding is not yet in place.

“We are looking into the funding possibilities. Now, do we have the capacity? Of course we do, within both the city and the EDC. but do we have the money in our pockets? Not yet.”

Arjona added: “Rest assured that the City of San Juan is working in the best interest of the city and that the things that the city is working on is for the betterment of the residents.”

Editor’s Note: In addition to the Downtown Development Plan Open House taking place on June 26, there is also a Downtown Business Owners Workshop. City Manager Ben Arjona said it is aimed at downtown business owners along Longoria and Nebraska. He said these businesses could come and learn how the city can help them prosper. The meeting takes place from, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on June 27 at the San Juan Memorial Library.